11 Second Solution

From what others have said on this forum. The 11 second solution is not relevent in todays market. Maybe some mining towns but you must research as capital growth may be little.
The general idea for positive cash flow seams to be to find a property bargain that with cheap renos would enhance its rental return markedly. ( maybe a coat of paint,carpet,garden tidy up) therefore turning a cash flow neutral or negative property into a positive one once increased rent from renos and tax deductions are taken into account. Plus over the following years your rent should increase also. So i guess the trick is finding a undervalued property that can be improved cheaply. Cheers.

To decide where to start; start with what you want to get out of it.

Do you want good cashflow, or are you happy to go neg geared and hope for cap growth?
Your decision determines what you look for.

If you want cashflow, then you must look at things like rent return, outgoings on the property, depreciation for tax returns BEFORE cap growth prospects. I like to get both, so I want more than this.

If you want cap growth and don't care about the neg gearing, you look at things like demographics, immigration into the area, is the population rising or dropping, is the area going through a resurge of renovations and upgrades, are there any council plans for public services and developments such as better roads, a new freeway or train line, a new shopping centre/s, cinemas, parks hospitals and schools. All these things mean progress and expansion, demand for rental properties and cap growth follows.

I drove through Berwick in Victoria about 4 years ago, and saw very little population, compared to the infrastructure in place. There were a lot of new take-aways and a big shopping complex being built, 4 lane roads being constructed, new houses and the Monash freeway was being extended. Good signs; it was as though there was a "gearing up" for the population that was to follow and it has.

We bought a place that has since doubled in value. It was neg geared, but had good depreciation to soften the blow.

So, start running the numbers, check the council activity and  go for a drive and study the area. What is happening? This will help you form a plan.

I went back and read Steve's books again and they are very much of their time, and the market Steve was talking about in "0-130 properties in 3.5 years" is very different to the market today. Also the market in a small mining town would be completely different to say Perth, where a cash positive property would be very hard to find off the shelf, and more creative techniques would be needed.

I wish I had been in the market when those sort of properties were available, but those who can adapt and think a little differently will constantly beat the market.

Good Luck to you.

Personally I read every book on property investing I can get my hands on, whenever it was written. Another I would recommend is "Building Wealth Storey by Storey" by Jan Somers. She collected a range of stories from all sorts of people and also a couple of horror stories. It's good to see just how many different ways there are to go about creating wealth through property.

If you just read one author it can give you a false impression, and what may work for some may not work for others. The Reno Kings are into value adding through renovation, which may turn a cash negative property into a cash positive one.

Just remember if it was that easy everybody would be doing it, but with the right motivation, a bit of passion, knowledge and research, a lot of money can be made from property.

Oh dear, I'd better stop now before I get the urge to start running seminars.